PilgrimstaysChrist the Redeemer stands at the summit of Corcovado mountain, 710 metres above Rio de Janeiro, with arms outstretched across a city of seven million people. The 30-metre Art Deco statue — designed by Brazilian engineer Heitor da Silva Costa, sculpted by French sculptor Paul Landowski, and inaugurated in 1931 — has become one of the most recognised images in the world. In 2007 it was declared one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. Approximately two million people visit each year. The statue was conceived as a monument to Brazil's Catholic faith and was built through the donations of Brazilian Catholics over five years. The outstretched arms, spanning 28 metres, suggest both embrace and blessing — a figure large enough to see the whole city and open to welcome all of it. Lightning strikes the statue more than six times per year on average; its most recent major damage in 2014 required the replacement of a finger and part of a hand. The chapel at the base of the statue — inaugurated in 2006 and dedicated to Our Lady of Aparecida — allows pilgrims to celebrate the sacraments in the shadow of Christ's outstretched arms. Masses, baptisms, and marriages take place here. The view from the summit on clear days extends 100 km to the south and east, taking in the full sweep of Guanabara Bay, Sugar Loaf Mountain, and the Atlantic Ocean.
Declared one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in 2007 The outstretched arms span 28 metres — a gesture of embrace over a city of 7 million people A small chapel at the base has celebrated marriages, baptisms, and Mass since 2006
The statue is struck by lightning more than six times per year on average Inaugurated on October 12, 1931 — the feast of Our Lady of Aparecida, Patroness of Brazil
From the observation terrace [OUTDOOR] The 360-degree view from the Corcovado summit takes in the full sweep of Rio de Janeiro: the beaches of Copacabana and Ipanema, Sugar Loaf Mountain in the bay, Guanabara Bay with its islands, the Tijuca Forest covering the mountains, and the city spreading from ocean to hills. On clear days the view extends 100 km. The statue stands above all of it, arms open.
the figure is simultaneously monumental and human. The outstretched arms cast a shadow that moves across the city with the sun.
At the base of the statue The small semicircular chapel, inaugurated by Pope John Paul II in 1980 and reopened in 2006, is where sacramental life happens at this monument. Couples marry here. Children are baptised here. Mass is celebrated here each Sunday. The combination of the chapel and the statue above makes Christ the Redeemer the most unusual parish in Brazil.
From Cosme Velho to the summit [OUTDOOR] The 30-minute rack railway journey through the Tijuca Forest is itself a memorable experience.
closes in on either side. The train climbs steeply. At the top, emerging from the forest into the open summit, the first view of the statue against the sky is a moment of genuine arrival.
Evening visit [OUTDOOR] The statue is illuminated each night and is visible from across Rio.
is one of the great urban vistas in the world. Evening visits in the golden hour are the most photographed.
From the summit of Corcovado, you can see the whole city: the poor favelas climbing the hillsides, the rich beaches, the bay, the ocean. The statue sees all of it equally. The arms are open to the favelas and the hotels with the same gesture. This is the most honest statement Christ the Redeemer makes: the arms do not distinguish. The embrace is for all of it — the whole bewildering, beautiful, unequal city below.
“See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.”
Read in full on Bible Gateway →Christ the Redeemer stands at the summit of Corcovado mountain, 710 metres above Rio de Janeiro, with arms outstretched across a city of seven million people. The 30-metre Art Deco statue — designed by Brazilian engineer Heitor da Silva Costa, sculpted by French sculptor Paul Landowski, and inaugurated in 1931 — has become one of the most recognised images in the world. In 2007 it was declared one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, and approximately two million people visit each year.
The statue was conceived as a monument to Brazil’s Catholic faith and was built through the donations of Brazilian Catholics over five years. The outstretched arms, spanning 28 metres, suggest both embrace and blessing — a figure large enough to see the whole city and open to welcome all of it. Lightning strikes the statue more than six times per year on average; its most recent major damage in 2014 required the replacement of a finger and part of a hand.
The chapel at the base of the statue — inaugurated in 2006 and dedicated to Our Lady of Aparecida — allows pilgrims to celebrate the sacraments in the shadow of Christ’s outstretched arms. Masses, baptisms and marriages take place here. The view from the summit on clear days extends 100 km to the south and east, taking in the full sweep of Guanabara Bay, Sugar Loaf Mountain, and the Atlantic Ocean.
